Adam Canfield of the Slash (The Slash Series) [Audiobook, CD, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Michael Winerip (Author), Patrick Lawlor (Reader)

Book Description

Series: The Slash Series | Publication Date: March 17, 2005

For years, Adam Canfield has been the number-one star reporter for the Harris Elementary/Middle School paper, the Slash. Nowadays he’s also the most overprogrammed kid in America. Gladiator quiz bowl, jazz band, statewide test prep class - he’s always running somewhere, and nine times out of ten, running late. When does a guy get time to just shoot some baskets anymore? Then his friend Jennifer talks him into being co-editor of the Slash. Between supervising know-it-all cub reporters and arguing with Principal Marris about which articles will “propel the Good Ship Harris forward,” Adam worries he might lose it altogether. But then a third grader delivers a scoop bigger than any of Adam’s career, and only Adam can dig deep enough to crack through a cover-up that will rock the very foundations of Harris itself. From Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist Michael Winerip, here is a first novel that delivers the rush of the newsroom, the adrenaline of a reporter on the trail of a hot story, and some keen insights into human nature - all with a lot of laughs.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Just where is all the news that's fit to print? Well, it may be right at Harris Elementary/Middle School.Lawlor gives energetic voice to Adam Canfield, ace student reporter and new co-editor of the school newspaper, The Slash, as he and his colleagues uncover one of the biggest stories not only at the school, but the whole town. Questions of ethics (should they expose a potential scandal involving their principal?), the propriety of the education system, and the number of organized extracurricular activities one kid can handle, are solid undercurrents to this fresh and often-funny story. In Lawlor's capable hands, the tale takes off to entertaining heights—in addition to Adam, his characterization of third-grade cub reporter Phoebe is particularly good. Winerip, a Pulitzer Prize–winning columnist for the New York Times, knows a thing or two about newsrooms and reporting, giving this recording a depth that can be appreciated by listeners of many ages. Ages 8-12. (June)
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From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8–Winerip has tapped on his experiences reporting on education issues for the New York Times to fashion this excellent novel. Adam is the reluctant new coeditor of the Slash, his affluent suburb's "award-winning" elementary/middle school newspaper. While he has a precocious penchant for investigative reporting, he's decidedly less adept in the interpersonal arena and finds he has much to learn from his more poised partner, Jennifer, about meeting the subtler demands of the job. Among them is the matter of how to supervise Phoebe, a pesky third-grade cub reporter who, though annoyingly hyper, turns out to have a remarkably potent pen and a disturbing talent for sniffing out front-page scoops. The suspenseful central plot begins when these three journalists discover that their school's social-climbing principal–a woman who likes to try to dictate the paper's content and use it as a medium for feel-good community relations–may have misused funds from a bequest to install luxurious amenities in her office. Do they dare pursue the ugly story and risk staining their "permanent records?" This poignant tension between facing thorny truths or acquiescing to more comfortable, but nonetheless insidious, systemic falsehoods–particularly those perpetuated in education, the media, race relations, and government–is echoed in subplots throughout the story. This is a deceptively fun read that somehow manages to present kids with some of the most subtle social and ethical questions currently shaping their futures.–Jeffrey Hastings, Highlander Way Middle School, Howell, MI --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio on CD Unabridged; Unabridged edition (March 17, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1597370916
• ISBN-13: 978-1597370912
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 5.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,614,820 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars STOP THE PRESSES -- And Put This Book On Page One, April 10, 2005

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TruthNinja (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Adam Canfield of the Slash (Hardcover)

Mike Winerip may single-handedly save American journalism with this hilarious, suspenseful, deeply-satisfying story of elementary/middle school students discovering the joys -- and terrors -- of investigative reporting. Kids will adore this book and clamor for the sequel; some will be inspired to become real reporters (corrupt principals and corporate-TV toadies beware!) But it should also be irresistible to any grown-up who ever worked for a newspaper, laughed at "The Paper," or rooted for Woodward and Bernstein in "All the President's Men."

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From a mom's viewpoint, August 18, 2005

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J. Reed - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Adam Canfield of the Slash (Hardcover)

My 13-year-old who rarely enjoys reading could hardly put this book down. This is the equivalent of a rave review! It made him more interested in reporting--and he liked it so much he's asked the whole family to read it!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chasing the Truth, March 14, 2005

By 

Susan Ferraro "Constant Reader" (White Plains, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Adam Canfield of the Slash (Hardcover)

Michael Winerip's wonderful and exciting story about a middle school-age reporter who is learning about his school, his friends, his town and himself is fun, smart, full of energy and thrills but without pretension or predicability. There are scenes that are laugh out loud funny, some hilarious characters who ring all too true, and issues about right and wrong, good and bad, that are really important. Just as good: even the bad guys have real personalities. Subtle social differences dictated by education, money, race and personal history unfold at an unforced pace. Among other things, readers will understand, reading "Adam Canfiled of the Slash," just why it is that a free press, when it is free, is so exciting, why it can make a great a positive difference in society, and why a true democracy needs it. Even better, readers will see that even kids can make a difference. Fortunately, Winerip never lets his large themes overwhelm or distract from his story, which is fun, engrossing and very satisfying.